My Love/Hate Relationship

This summer, I took a class called Music in the Elementary Classroom. It was THE best class of my life. Our professor was the sweetest old man and the quintessential elementary music teacher. Very soft spoken, hilarious, and not afraid to dance around. He seemed to be from the same generation as my elementary music teacher, Ms. Dahl, which is safe to say because we sang a lot of the same old songs she taught us at Sagebrush Elementary School. Needless to say, I was very nostalgic this summer.

As a final assignment for this class, we had to choose a children's song and create a children's book using a unique artistic medium. This book was supposed to display artistic creativity and music literacy. I was having a hard time picking a children's song (there are some really nonsensical songs in this world), so I decided it would mean more to me if I wrote my own! This project turned into more of a pre-gift for my children and thereby became more meaningful. I decided to make a fabric book and to iron on the music. (Let me tell you how long it took to figure out how to flip the music so it could print backwards so I could iron it on). This is where this project turned into a love/hate relationship. I LOVED writing a song AND a book! I felt complete ownership and that is a lovely feeling. But 50 bucks and 50 hours later in the middle of the hot summer semester and while starting a new job and being newly married made me hate this book. It took over our lives! I think if I put away the book for a bout a year and pull it out again, I will feel much better about it.

So here it is. I titled it,

"A Love Song for Love Birds."

1. There is a lonely bird

Who sings a song so sweet.

He sings to his true love

Whom someday he will meet.

Chorus:

Sing little bird, sing to me,

Sing me to your cherry tree.

Sing little bird, sing to me,

Sing me to your tree.

2. There is a lady dove

In a tree not far away.

She hears his song of love

And you can hear her say:

(Chorus)

3. Each one follows the song

Of the other as they fly

They search the whole day long

As they sing their lullaby.

(Chorus)

4. It started to get late

And the birds started to cry

They feared their lonely fate

As they sang one more reply.

(Chorus)

5. At last as fate would be

Each other they did see.

They made a little home

As they sang happily:

Chorus:

Sing little bird, sing to me,

Sing me to your cherry tree.

Sing little bird, sing to me,

Sing me to your tree.

Done.